Sometimes Accidents Happen, Sometimes People are Dumbasses

We've all heard the tragic stories: mom or dad forgets that a sleeping baby is in the back seat and they trudge off to work with baby in the car. They come back for lunch, or at the end of the day, and are faced with a dead child. It's heartbreaking, but it happens all too often, especially if there was a change in the daily routine. It's just the way our brains are wired. That's why they tell you to keep a stuffed animal in the carseat when it's empty, and to put it on the front seat when baby's back there. That way if you do forget, at least there's something tangible to remind you.

When you see news like this in the paper though, it makes you want to vomit. A woman left her five children, ages 10 months, 2, 6, 11, and 12 in the car with the windows cracked open while she gambled in the local casino. Security officers found the children in the car, alive, thank God, and attempted to page the mother. Attempted to page her for over an HOUR. While security footage shows she played SLOT MACHINES. By the way, it was 91 degrees outside that day.

What the f*ck?!

Who freakin knows how long those kids were in the car BEFORE security officers found the kids and started tracking down their neglectful mother. The oldest daughter had a cellphone and knew the number to reach her mother, but her mother didn't have a phone on her. Way to go, mom. She's been arraigned on five counts of endangering the welfare of a child and sent to county prison under $10,000 bail. I'd be willing to bet that her bail is far more than those slots were paying out.

"District Attorney John Morganelli.... has said his office will seek 'severe sanctions' for parents who leave their kids alone while gambling. He said none of those charged would be allowed to participate in a first-time offenders' program." Apparently this isn't the first case in my area of the world of parents leaving their kids in cars while at a casino. There have been ten other cases in the past two years in a nearby county. What is wrong with people?!